Vinton Fall Festival boasts another successful year
VINTON – The day started with a pancake breakfast and ended with a sing along.
Saturday was the annual Vinton Fall Festival. Even the rain and clouds didn’t keep people away from the Festival in downtown Vinton, which took over parts of Lee Avenue and Pollard Street, as well as South Maple and Walnut. Members of the Vinton Area Chamber of Commerce, as well as others directly involved with this year’s Festival,
estimated the attendance to be approximately nine to ten thousand people.
The Mayberry Deputy was one of the popular attractions at the Vinton Fall Festival on October 10.
In addition to the handmade bags and toys, there was a variety of other items to choose from including jewelry, pottery, and pink tools designed especially for women. After the 5K race awards were announced, dancers and musicians were on hand to entertain the crowd. The William Byrd High School Theatre Department performed songs from their production, “You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown,” and members of a baton corps and a karate school did demonstrations.
A small Civil War encampment could be seen on East Lee Avenue, and between explosions one could even watch the “soldiers” eat funnel cakes. The Vinton Fire Department taught passers-by how to use a fire extinguisher, and the Police Department allowed drivers to try out DUI goggles. Children crawled through an inflated caterpillar and enjoyed a petting zoo. The more courageous paid for rides in the back of a monster truck.
Vinton Supervisor candidates Mike Altizer and Patrick Patterson stumped at the Festival, and School Board incumbent Mike Stovall gave out stickers and answered questions in preparation for Election Day. The Mayberry Deputy strolled around downtown Vinton for most of the day, signing autographs and making people laugh.
Dixie Lee was a contestant at the Vinton Fall Festival doggy pageant on October 10. Dogs dressed up and did tricks to try to win one of three prizes. Dixie Lee is a rescued dog who was left alone in her home for two weeks after her owners moved away.
One of the more popular activities at the Festival was the Doggy Costume Contest. There were 18 contestants in the pageant, not including Tigger the mascot, who dressed up and performed tricks to win an award. There were three prizes given: Best Costume, Best Trick, and Best in Show, given to the dog with the best costume and the best trick. Zoey the bumblebee, a Silky Terrier, won Best in Show for doing a high-five with Kallie Niday, dressed in a matching outfit. Best Costume went to Chocklett the dog for dressing up as a prisoner, and matching owner Randy Horton who dressed as a police officer. Best Trick went to Tango for the fifth year in a row, for doing a multitude of tricks, including play dead and roll over.
Other dogs appeared as bananas, a skunk, and even a s’more.
By the end of the day, both dogs and people were exhausted, and Vinton wrapped up another successful Fall Festival.
Randy Horton dressed up as a police officer for the Vinton Fall Festival doggy pageant to match his dog, Chocklett, dressed as a prisoner. The two won Best Costume at the contest, which gave out three prizes: one for Best Trick, one for Best Costume, and one for Best in Show.
